This application claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. xc2xa7119(e) for European Patent Application 01109855.5 filed on Apr. 23, 2001, the content of which is relied upon and incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
The present invention relates to stripping tools for coaxial cables and more particularly to such tools for coaxial cables with a corrugated outer conductor and a hollow inner conductor.
A coaxial cable of the above mentioned kind comprises a hollow inner conductor with a longitudinal axis and coaxially with said inner conductor a tubular layer of insulating material between said inner conductor and an outer conductor which is corrugated in a non-helical manner in order to improve flexibility of the cable, said outer conductor thereby comprising a repeated axial pattern of crests and valleys, and finally provided with an outer insulating jacket.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a stripping tool for a coaxial cable with said kind of corrugated outer conductor and a hollow inner conductor, which tool is capable of performing all stripping steps required in order to prepare the cable for insertion into a coaxial connector.
More specifically said tool must be capable of providing the correct relative axial locations of the end of the inner conductor, the end of said insulating material provided between the inner and outer conductor, the end of the corrugated outer conductor and the end of the jacket. Furthermore, said correct relative axial locations must be obtained with the tool no matter at what axial location the cable is initially cut off.
According to the present invention there is thus provided a stripping tool comprising the following main means:
A jacket cutting means for stripping the appropriate axial length of the jacket, thereby exposing the corresponding axial length of said outer conductor.
A guide means to be placed coaxially around the coaxial cable after said appropriate axial length of the jacket has been removed as described above, where said guide means during operation of the stripping tool guides a second cutting means and provides a well defined axial abutment surface for this means. The guide means is furthermore provided with position determining means so that it can be located at a well-defined axial position relative to said repeated pattern of crests and valleys thereby positioning said abutment surface at a well-defined axial position relative to said pattern of crests and valleys.
A second cutting means for providing the required relative axial positions of the end of the outer conductor, the corresponding end of the insulating material between the inner conductor and the outer conductor and the end of the inner conductor, said second cutting means being guided by said guide means and being provided with cutters, blades or similar means operating while the second means is being displaced axially relative to the cable along said guide means until said abutment between the second cutting means and said guide means is obtained.